


Remorse

by shutupeccles



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst and Humor, M/M, MWPP Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-01
Updated: 2012-12-01
Packaged: 2017-11-21 07:34:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/595146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shutupeccles/pseuds/shutupeccles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Padfoot eavesdrops because he’s worried about Moony. Inefficient spell casting garbles the communication and Padfoot’s overreacts. Padfoot is certain he’s blown any chance of convincing Moony’s parents he isn’t an utter twat, or of becoming more than a friend to Moony, after that whole Snape-in-the-Shrieking-Shack debacle. A bout of un-Black behaviour puts things to rights. Wormtail and Prongs provide moral support and comic relief as good friends should.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Remorse

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cackling_madly](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=cackling_madly).



> Horklumps and Graphorns feature in Newt Scamander’s _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_.

The door closed softly behind Moony. Prongs counted to 183 in his head before sneaky footsteps followed Moony out of the dorm. “And there goes Padfoot,” Prongs announced for Wormtail’s benefit.

“Three minutes,” Wormtail replied. “He’s learning patience.”

“He’s rather acutely attuned to Moony’s moods of late. Have you noticed?”

“Rather,” agreed Wormtail. “Perhaps their cycles have synchronised.”

The friends chuckled in the darkness and silently wondered whether the other two were secretly getting together, or merely hoping to.

________________________________________

Padfoot could tell Moony was in a tizz about something. Moony in a tizz wasn’t much different from Moony outside a tizz unless you knew what to look for, unlike Padfoot, Wormtail, or Prongs. Potter’s tizzes were legendary, Moony’s rare. This must be a doozy since Padfoot found Moony kneeling by the common room fireplace and talking to his dad. Moony only called home via Floo when he couldn’t confide in the Marauders or Dumbledore about something. Padfoot often used the Floo to sneak into Grimmauld Place and rearrange the furniture since he’d moved out. Prongs would simply ask Mummy Potter for more socks or simply say “hi” through the fireplace because he couldn’t be arsed with owls. The Pettigrews had theirs disconnected after Padfoot convinced Wormtail to transport the Marauders to Nicaragua during a sleepover. The Potters were the only Marauder parents that liked Sirius. He wanted Moony’s to like him. Sirius wanted Remus to like him, love him, get off on him and with him. Sirius Black wanted Remus Lupin like James Potter wanted Lily Evans. He just didn’t make a West End production of it.

Moony’s current mood must be a shocker. For obvious reasons his secrecy charms were impeccable. Not tonight though. Snippets of conversation escaped his private bubble and Padfoot did not like what he heard.

“…prefer everyone to Sirius…Regulus the calmer, quiet, athletic academic…other Slytherins…despite everything, I love Severus and…”

Padfoot stared at the back of Moony’s head and thought ‘You bastard!’ repeating that thought as he climbed the stairs to their dorm. “Bastard,” he said loudly enough to wake his true and proper friends.

“So you know what’s bothering Moony then?” Wormtail asked without a hint of drowsiness. The buggers hadn’t even been asleep!

“That letter he got from his parents, saying how they ‘disapprove’ of me knowing why he’s Moony because ‘those Blacks can’t be trusted’…”

“The one you stole from his pocket while he was taking a piss,” Prongs said to hurry Padfoot along.

“He’s downstairs assuring them he prefers everyone else in Hogwarts to me.”

Wormtail sat forward and rested both elbows on his knees as he stared at Padfoot. “That can’t be right.”

“He gave my git of a brother a glowing endorsement and then confessed to…” It was too horrible to repeat. Padfoot would put a stop to this Slytherin-loving nonsense. The next full moon was only days away. He’d make damn certain Moony would never be snogging Snivellus effing Snape!

“You saying he’s hot for someone else?” asked Prongs.

“Piss off,” Padfoot replied weakly then he realised he may have dropped himself in it. “Someone other than who?” he asked Prongs.

“You, you tit!”

“What are we going to do about it?” Wormtail asked as though this was something Marauding could fix.

“ _We_ aren’t doing anything Wormtail. This requires a solo mission.”

________________________________________

Prongs tailed Padfoot while Wormtail stayed close to Moony. Padfoot, the cunning sod, distracted Prongs by placing Evans in his path. If Wormtail hadn’t gone rat and scarpered out of the tunnel to tell Prongs what he’d learned then Severus Snape would be a dead git or worse, a werewolf.

“You half-deaf idiot!” Prongs bellowed at Padfoot after hauling a quivering Snape to the infirmary. “ _Sirius_ not _Severus_.”

“Fuck.”

“Slightly, yeah.”

“Oh fuck.”

Prongs linked his fingers behind his head and stared at the ceiling as Padfoot became a puddle of misery on the corridor floor.

________________________________________

Wormtail offered to wait outside the Headmaster’s office. Padfoot twitchily shook his head and took out a pipe stuffed with weed. Wormtail deftly lifted the pipe from Padfoot’s trembling fingers and pocketed it. Padfoot smiled gratefully. Pleas for mercy would seem less genuine if he was off his face.

“Listen, Wormtail. Moony’s going to feel like absolute dung when he gets in, so you wait with Prongs at the infirmary.”

Wormtail’s watery eyes widened and he fidgeted with his fingers. “No one’s supposed to know what happened.”

“Like Prongs wouldn’t gloat to you about playing the hero,” Padfoot scoffed.

Wormtail grinned at that then left Padfoot to face his fate sober and alone. Padfoot leaned his head back against the wall and repeated a mantra of mild profanities under his breath until Professor McGonagall called him into Dumbledore’s office. His carefully rehearsed speech of apology congealed and refused to return to its original state.

________________________________________

John Lupin fully intended to have that Black menace expelled before taking Remus out of Hogwarts. Of all the wizards in this school, why did his son have to become stuck on the Toujours pur Emperor of Detention? Remus admitted himself that he should prefer anyone and everyone to Sirius ruddy Black. The younger brother sounded alright. John had found his name on various awards and trophies. Surely Remus would see sense after this debacle. He could not afford to think with his dick.

“Sirius effing…” John muttered wrathfully.

His wife touched his hand in a soothing gesture, which actually meant she sought comfort from him. John obliged and tried harder to be calm. Then the door opened behind them as Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall brought in the profanity. Rationality, be damned! John stood with his wand at the ready to greet his son’s ‘friend’ with an Unforgiveable Curse or two.

Black balanced his wand against both palms and placed it at John’s feet in the wizards’ gesture of surrender. “Don’t take Remus home. He deserves to be here. I don’t. I’m sorry. He… He’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of and never been able to have. I liked… I love him and now I’ve lost him forever.” Silent tears slid from the boy’s eyes while he listed all the ways he hoped to make amends.

John stared at the weeping evil incarnate and then at his wife. He lowered his wand. True Blacks did not express remorse, simply because they couldn’t feel it. John told Sirius to describe events from the beginning. The two parents and two Professors listened without interrupting.

“Something similar happened between two Ravenclaws and a Gryffindor when I attended Hogwarts,” admitted John. “None of those incidents involved a werewolf, however. Still, whatever punishment the Professors set is good enough for me.” John gave Sirius back his wand.

Professor Dumbledore nodded his approval before delving into consequences.

________________________________________

There was a soft, warm, rounded mass beside his hip when Remus woke in the infirmary. Peter must have gone rat and curled up against him to stand guard. Remus reached across to gratefully stroke Wormtail’s fur and instead encountered a shaggy, human head.

“You!” Remus said harshly and pushed Black away. He no longer thought of that turd in terms of Marauder nicknames. Black’s form of friendship deserved to be rogered by a rampant herd of Graphorns! Rage filled Remus more than fear; rage and humiliation. He launched himself at Black, knocking him to the floor. “I defended you!” Punch, pummel, pound. “Stood up for you!” Pummel, punch, kick. Pant. “Trusted, damn it Sirius, I…”

Four pairs of hands separated them. Black remained sitting on the floor with the other Marauders behind him. Of course they’d take his side!

Potter said “He knows, Moony.”

“Remus,” Mum said while letting go of his left shoulder. “It was a horrible, dangerous mistake that started with a misunderstanding.”

“You know Padfoot’s the jealous type,” Peter put in. “Remember that time my sugar quill was larger than his?”

Prongs turned his face to the side to hide a reflexive smile. Moony had to suppress his own. That was different. No one’s life or sanity had been in danger then.

“What possible link can there be between…?” Remus began to ask. His father whispered in his ear before Remus finished the question. “Oh.” Remus looked near rather than at Sirius. “You’re still an idiot. I don’t forgive you. Have you been expelled?”

“Professor Dumbledore decided to leave that up to you. Are you staying?” Sirius asked.

Remus snorted. “As if I’d be allowed after…” He was interrupted by more murmuring from his father. Important words like ‘remorse’, ‘accountability’ and ‘love’ were punctuated by meaningful glances in Sirius’ direction. Sirius had taken full responsibility, an anomaly in itself, but it was something else that finally won the Lupins over. “He told Walburga that, as well as the Potters?” Remus asked quietly. His mother nodded. Remus couldn’t believe it. “You can’t honestly plan to support me once we finish school, Sirius. That’s ages away.”

“Like there’s anyone who compares to you,” Sirius said brashly.

“You don’t have any money!”

“No, but I can earn it. You can’t. Of course, if you’d rather shack up with my Slytherin brother…”

“Not on your life! I should, but I don’t. And I haven’t forgiven you.”

“You know you will Moony,” said Prongs.

“You always do,” added Wormtail.

“It’s so inevitable that we’re assuming you already have and are only making a fuss now for the sake of appearances.” Prongs was undoubtedly proud of his statement, arrogant twat. Remus didn’t know how to respond since it wasn’t entirely false.

“Clever arrogant twat,” Remus muttered. Padfoot winked at him and Remus failed to smother a smile. Lord he was sexy and naughty and bound to lead Remus further astray.

“Good grief, what have we fallen victim to?” Remus heard Mum ask Dad.

“Our omnipotent charisma,” Prongs said with emphatic flair. His grin spread through the Marauders, including Moony. He was one of them after all.

Moony’s mother stifled a chortle and said “Oh dear.”

________________________________________

“Forgiven me yet?” Padfoot asked Moony in hopes of receiving absolution and a kiss.

Wormtail tallied how many times Padfoot asked in relation to positive responses from Moony. The count reached 61:0 before Moony showed signs of weakening.

________________________________________

Moony and Padfoot sat on the couch closest to the common room fireplace and were wrapped around each other from lips to legs. The non-snogging Marauders sat on the floor in front of either armrest, flicking Horklumps back and forth across the tatty red carpet or occasionally into the crackling fire. Everyone else had cleared off.

“Remember when Moony’s parents disapproved of Padfoot?” Wormtail asked Prongs as their friends snogged.

“Indeed I do Wormtail, quite fondly in fact. It was a sunny Wednesday with a moderate south-westerly breeze. I was wearing pants...!”

Moony firmly pressed a sock-clad foot against Prongs’ cheek until he shut up.

“I think it’s time we head upstairs. Got those annoying things called ‘lessons’ in the morning,” Wormtail told Prongs rather loudly.

The other pair kept snogging and began to lay flat on the couch with Padfoot on top. Padfoot began to lift a section of Moony’s shirt.

“Right you are Wormtail,” said Prongs directly above Padfoot’s ear.

Moony swatted Prongs away without breaking suction as Prongs warned him not to get herpes. Moony’s hand slid into Padfoot’s pocket to retrieve a flavoured French-letter found in the naughty section of Honeydukes. He held it up with a flourish and hooked one leg around Padfoot’s bum as they continued snogging.

“I doubt your parents would approve of _that_ Mr Lupin,” Prongs scolded in imitation of Professor McGonagall then fled upstairs with Wormtail before their friends took out their wands.


End file.
